"The relocation is necessary and will contribute to the improvement of teaching," said Deputy Minister of Education and Training Bui Van Ga.

Universities located in Hanoi's inner urban areas would be partly or completely relocated to eight university-college zones in suburban areas.

The decision comes as part of the capital's construction master plan towards 2030 proposed by the Ministry of Construction.

Under the plan, zones would be opened in Hanoi in the dístricts of Gia Lam, Soc Son, Son Tay, Phu Xuyen and Chuong My.

Each zone would cover between 120-150ha to 1,200-1,500ha, with room to accommodate 3-7 universities/colleges and 650,000-700,000 students.

The ministry estimated that it will need around 4.9 billion USD for infrastructure and technical facilities.

The ministry also recommended criteria to decide which institutions would be moved including their sizes, fields of expertise and infrastructure.

HCM City would set up three zones including 660ha in Hoc Mon and Cu Chi districts, 735ha in District 7, Binh Chanh, Nha Be and 815 ha in District 9, Thu Duc and neighbouring Binh Duong province's Di An district.

The city first planned to relocate universities in 2006, but has struggled with the relocation process.

HCM City Banking University Principal Ngo Huong said that the university has land and money to build an alternative facility in Thu Duc district but hasn't been able to obtain a construction licence due to complicated procedures.

Van Hien University Principal Nguyen Mong Hung said that land clearance and compensation payment have prevented the relocation projects from getting off the ground.

Some universities including the HCM Architecture University and the Sports Training University are unable to implement the project due to financial constraints./.